A Drachma for your Thoughts
by Thalico RULZ
Summary: This is about how Thalia finds about how Nico thinks of her... in a very creative way. She goes to Aphrodite, and asks for help, and receives help, albeit in a queer way. What the goddess asks in return... surely it's too much? But Thalia thinks it will be worth it when she discovers a secret, as deep and dark as her own.


Thalia's POV  
I carefully stepped into a souvenir shop, looking for something. Normally, I wouldn't be caught dead in one, but I was desperate. I spotted what I was looking for.  
A prism. I paid for it, and took it to a bright yet seluded place. I definitely did not need any mortals to witness this, nor did I want demigods to see.  
Adjusting the prism, soon I made a rainbow. "O goddess, accept my offering" I murmured. Tossing a drachma in it, it shimmered, and the coin disappeared. I bit my lip, reconsidering. Maybe I should cancel. Or contact somebody else. I couldn't do this.  
The plan was too bizzare, but I took a deep breath, and said "Show me Lady Aphrodite" I requested.  
There. There was no going back.  
The rainbow shimmered, revealing an image of the goddess looking at her image in a mirror, and fixing her flawless make up.  
Aphrodite saw me, and turned around, a smile on her face.  
"So, what does the Hunter want?" I gulped, and said "Um.. You see, I..." I said, blushing bright red. Aphrodite laughed, a tinkling sound.  
"You're so cute! But why don't we talk in person, Thalia." She said, gesturing, and with a flash of light, Aphrodite was with me. Or rather, I was with Aphrodite. The room was decorated with pink, and more pink. There were pictures of her favorite couples, Percy and Annabeth, Jason and Piper, on the walls.  
I shuddered inwardly, and the room changed. The walls darkned into black, and the curtains to colors of gray. The fancy pink vanity vanished, leaving in its place a simple mirror of black. The pictures on the walls... I looked away, my face burning.  
"Oh dear, your ideal room seems to be dark. In fact," Aphrodite continued, a mischievous smile on her face, "it seems to resemble a certain Hades cabin at your camp. Why, and the pictures..." She trailed off before squealing. "I can't believe it! You guys are so cute! I don't know why I didn't think of this couple before!"  
My face rivaling a tomato's, heck, exceeding that of it, I looked at the pictures again. The pictures had changed to my happiest memories, which showed Annabeth, Percy, Nico, and me together, smiling. And the rest of the pictures were of quests, outdoor scenes, but they all had one thing in common. Nico.  
The largest one was of me, Nico, and Percy. It showed us having cheeseburgers at McHale's. It was after our mini quest by Persephone, to retrive Hades' sword. I had promised to buy cheeseburgers, and we were laughing and sharing stories.  
"So, Thalia. What do you want?" The goddess of love said, smiling hugely. I briefly considered saying 'Nope, sorry. Wrong number,' but decided to forge on.  
"I just uh.. wantdtoknowmoreaboutNico" I said really quickly, and she looked at me.  
"Then, my dear, you will have to do something for me, too."She said. "Nothing comes without a price. In order to achieve your wish, you must tell Artemis that you quit the Hunt. I cannot help a Hunter without raising the anger of Artemis. So, do you accept my terms?"  
I stood there, numb. Leave the Hunt? My family?  
Aphrodite seemed to sense my doubts. "I think, you might feel differently after you get your wish." She said, taking out a black bottle of perfume.  
I steeled my nerves. "Okay." I said, and she sprayed me with it. I coughed, and felt a warm feeling spread through me. It was pleasant at first, then painfully hot, searing, as if I was on fire. I doubled over, squeezing my hands tight.  
I looked in my mirror, and watched with horror as I shrank in size, growing smaller and smaller, until I became... a cat.  
A black she cat, with electric blue eyes.  
"What!" I screeched, and realized with shock that I had literally screeched. I tried complaining, but it only came out as some yowls and hisses of fury.  
"Now, now, Thalia. This is the best way to find out. And remember, you won't turn human unless either Nico finds out you are Thalia, or when you drink water." She said, snapping her perfectly manicured fingernails, and I disappeared in a flash.  
Nico's POV  
I sat on a gravestone in New Orleans, staring out over the horizon. I was thinking of Thalia, and I... missed her.  
She was an exotic style, so different from normal girls, that interested me. She had amazing courage. Always in control. Confident. Beautiful.  
I wasn't really the type to think much about girls, but she was the one exception.  
I then noticed a black cat sitting on the entrance of the graveyard, blue eyes studying me. It mewed, and started padding warily to me.  
I was startled. Cats, dogs, whatever never approached me. They all hated me, avoiding me, and I avoided them, too. So I sat still as the black cat padded slowly to me, and I watched.  
"Hey," I called out quietly, and it pricked its ears. We watched each other for some time before darkness fell.  
I slipped off the gravestone, sitting on the ground.  
"Here, Blackie," I said. It seemed like a good name for a black cat. Its eyes got rounder, and came over, settling in my lap. I winced as its claws accidentally scratched me, but I managed to stay still. Something about it reminded me vaguely of someone, but I didn't remember.  
Thalia's POV  
I saw Nico sitting by himself in a graveyard, and I slowly went to him, trying to look like a normal cat. He noticed me, and said "Hey,"  
I felt strange, seeing Nico didn't recognize me. We sat there for several moments, but he soon said "Here, Blackie."  
It took a minute for me to register he was calling me Blackie. I almost hissed, but managed to keep myself calm as I went to him, settling in his lap, though I scratched him a little.  
I did that because he seemed lonely, and sad.  
"People think you are bad luck, just like me." He started. I was surprised. They consider him bad luck?  
"I'm supposed to be all dark and gloomy, just because I'm a son of Hades. And maybe I am. But not always. I need to hav fun sometimes, like anybody. I hate being isolated, seperate from others. The other Big Three, Percy, Jason, and Thalia-" His voice caught a little, "-, they are all accepted by others. But why not Hades? Why not me?"  
The anguish in his voice was so strong I wanted to comfort him. He started stroking me, almost subconsiously, and it felt strange, but good.  
"Thalia, she's this daughter of Zeus. We met when I was ten years old, a kid obsessed with Mythomagic. Isn't it ironic, when my whole world was made of myths. At that time, I didn't understand. I thought this was all a game. It wasn't. Finding out I was a son of Hades, losing Bianca to the Hunters, and knowing she died, was almost as if the world was laughing at the entire irony." I felt impatient. Stop changing the topic!  
"Thalia... she was different. I don't know why. I never felt more than friendliness from her, and I admired her attitude, her courage. Then one day, me, Percy, and Thalia had to go on a quest to retrieve my dad's sword. Percy and Thalia, although they could've refused, went with me. That's when I fell for her hard." I felt shocked. He... loved me?  
"But she only viewed me as a friend, and being friends with her was the second best thing I've done." 'What's the first?' I wondered.  
"But the Fates apparently hated me as well, because Thalia had to go and join those stupid Hunters. They had to make my life miserable by taking Bianca, and then Thalia. I felt completely lost then, feeling stupid for the foolish, boyish hopes I had..." Water splashed on my pelt, and I flinched instinctively. Wait. He was crying? "Oh, sorry," Nico said as he blinked away tears.  
"I always thought one day, one day I would be able to tell to her, and say the truth. Now it's already four years ago, and I'm sixteen. Thalia's always going to be fifteen. Even when I'm long dead and gone, she's always going to stay the same, for hundreds of years. A long time to wait." He said, now lost in thought. I looked up at him, and he noticed my eyes.  
"You have bright blue eyes... just like her's." He said absently, and stiffened. I stiffened also, leaping off his legs, fur bristling.  
"You aren't..." He started, eyes horrified, and he ran.  
"Wait!" I called out after him, now human, as I ran after him.  
I finally caught up with him, and spun him around, holding him by the shoulders. "Nico," I said. He turned his face away, tring to get away.  
"Nico!" I said, shaking him. "Listen to me!" He turned around to face me, eyes wary.  
"I heard everything you said. Is it true?" I said softly, and he nodded, not meeting my eyes. "Then why didn't you just tell me?" I asked, and he looked up, a light hope in his eyes.  
"Didn't you think, I might feel the same way?" I said, and faced up towards the sky.  
"Aphrodite, I keep my promise! Artemis, I ask to be released from your service!" I shouted, and felt suddenly dizzy as I felt more grounded again, the silver aura fading away, and the scent of sweet perfume reached me.  
I stumbled against Nico, and he caught me.  
"You feel the same way? You gave up the Hunt?" He asked, his dark brown eyes surprised.  
"Yes," I said, and kissed him.  
It lasted for several sweet seconds, and we pulled away.  
"I'm never going to leave you. And," I said, a slight smirk on my face, I said "I would say 'A drachma for your thoughts' but I guess, I got it free, didn't I?"  
Nico laughed, and I took his hand.  
"Then," he said, smiling, "a drachma for your thoughts."


End file.
